Seventh chapter, almost there. Heck, I didn't even know I had written nine whole chapters for this fic. That is actually a lot more than I remembered.

Note: This chapter contains some historical information. I tried to stay as accurate as possible. It also contains some information about Masamune's father. My only disclaimer is that any changes I might make will not alter the flow of the story.

Honestly, I always thought Masamune was an interesting character. I was mostly impressed by his design when I was a kid, but when I used to read actual information about him and his history, it changed my view on him. At first I just thought he was a cool kid with guns, but learning that he was ambitious and suffered through so much, yet remained ambitious all of his life, I could respect that a lot. Also, did you know that when Masamune served under Ieyasu, Masamune actually visited Ieyasu's deathbed? It is not even something I recently read, it is something I remember reading years ago. That made me wonder if Masamune ever thought of Ieyasu as a fatherly figure, or if he just straight up respected him. Maybe both. Also, I liked the fact that in the game Masamune is depicted as being crazy and not giving a shit about anyone and would even murder his own family just for conquest, but it actually is the opposite of what is true. That is so edgy but I found it so cool back then lmao.

I am so happy I am picking this story up again. I just forgot how much I used to love writing, but also how much I loved learning about the Sengoku period. I will have to do research again though, because there is a lot I have forgotten, since it has been literal years. Anyhow, that is all from me for now.

Chapter 7

The nights were cold and lonely without him. Darkness loomed around her and the only light that illuminated their bedroom were tiny rays of moonlight peeking through the window shutters.

Mego looked up from her bed as she rolled onto her back. She could see the moon in between the shutters' gaps and it was a beautiful, bright crescent. It reminded her of her husband whenever there was a crescent moon. She admitted that his armor suited him well. He was her dragon. Her moon. Her light in the dark.

A deep sigh escaped her lips and she turned on her side, her hands playing with a few strands of her long, dark hair while she faced the window as she sadly stared outside.

She reached out her hand, fingertips roaming her husband's side of the bed while she wished he was here beside her. She sighed and began to ponder and bit her bottom lip.

When Masamune was still in Oshu he told her he'd set out again for his conquest. Mego understood completely that he just wanted to protect her by not taking her into war, but she could not help but feel sad. She missed him so much and all she could do was wait. It was unbearable.

"Mego, you're the dragon's most important treasure. If I will take you with me, there will be someone out there who might try to take you away from me and I cannot let that happen. If you get hurt because of me, I will never forgive myself."

Of course, she understood perfectly why Masamune thought this way. However, Mego was a strong and capable woman. She could defend herself and she did not want to stay inside the castle all of the time. She was a good fighter, even if one does say so herself. Besides, it's not like there wasn't any risk involved while staying in Oshu. Who knows when the enemy will strike here? Maybe even when they would expect it the least. There was no way to be sure of anything.

In any case, Mego just wished to fight alongside her love and she wanted to protect him and his dreams. She believed in him and she knew he could make this land prosper. Was it too much to ask to accompany him? After all, she is his wife. She had the right to watch over him. What if he got hurt on the battlefield and she would lose him without a chance to see him ever again? She'd just be a lonely widow, mourning forever over her husband's earthly department.

Of course, she believed that Masamune was a strong warrior himself and she did not doubt his abilities, but all that she wanted was to fight alongside him. Was that really too much to ask?

Ironically enough though, before Masamune and Mego got married at a young age, she absolutely despised war and never wanted to set foot on a battlefield. However, as soon as their marriage was arranged she got to know Masamune, who was very ambitious. In hindsight, she thought it was an amazing feat for someone that young to already be as determined as he was. Though, during that time, Mego was not impressed at all. She despised his way of thinking and could not believe that she had to get married to someone as thick-skulled as he was.

It is funny how time can change things. She could not imagine that she ever thought about him that way, while now she loved him to bits and admired him for everything that he was. After all, they grew up together, lived through hardships together and supported each other. Their bond deepened and eventually, she gave him her heart. Masamune taught her so much and he even taught her how to fight and defend herself, which was all the more reason why she wanted to accompany him on his conquest, but sadly, he would never allow it.

"Please bear with me, Mego. I cannot let you fall into the hands of the enemy." He always told her this while holding her hands, squeezing them softly and staring down at her tenderly with the gentlest and loving expression one could imagine.

Any wife would be happy to know her husband cared so much for her that they are willing to protect them, but still Mego's heart was not at ease.

The thought of any other woman besides herself fighting alongside her husband, made her angry and sad. Of course, she was not angry at Masamune at all, but she was just envious that another woman got to be there to protect him while Mego herself couldn't do anything at all.

Her hand clenched the empty sheets beside her while she softly chuckled to herself.

She was a silly woman indeed. Masamune was a man who stuck to his beliefs. His only interest was conquest and uniting Japan. She would not forgive herself if she would even dare as much as question her husband's intentions, because questioning him meant that she stopped believing in him. That should never happen. That would make her a terrible wife.

Loneliness can make the heart waver.

Mego refused to give in to that. She would patiently wait for Masamune's return. If she could do that, then she would be reunited with her love in no time.

The night seemed so long. Masamune could not even get as much as a minute of sleep. He just sat there in his tent pondering and brooding. Finally he had convinced Shiorin to join his army, but now he was thinking of how to get this spineless woman to stop being a coward and face her fears. He imagined that if she would be too afraid to even lift a finger in a fight, she'd just get herself killed. What could he do though? As she's already proven many times before, words were absolutely useless. Nothing he said before eased her at all. If she were to let go of her fears, he needed something more effective, but what? Perhaps the only option was directly exposing her to real danger after all, meaning that he should just take her into the next battle.

There was a chance that she would not survive, but on the other hand, every human being possessed survival instinct right? If she wanted to live, surely she would try and defend herself. Sometimes people are the most dangerous when backed into a corner.

Masamune decided to gamble. After all, he knew very well what it was like to be in a life threatening situation where there is no way out. As a warlord, he encountered that many times. There were many examples, but the worst experience had to be his father's death. Probably because he was the one responsible for it, even though it was not his fault.

That is what he tried to tell himself every day, however, it became very difficult to not believe the lies and rumors that said otherwise.

According to the majority of this nation, the one eyed dragon was a maniac who killed his own father just in order to succeed him. People whispered that his ambition drove him towards insanity and because of that, there were not many other rulers who believed in Masamune, nor wanted to work with him.

The Date name was slandered all because of a sick lie.

It was true that Terumune Date, Masamune's father, died because of him, but this was not what he wished for. That cursed day still caused the young lord nightmares and he knew that this godforsaken moment will forever haunt him for the rest of his existence.

Terumune Date used to be the head of the Date clan and he was extremely successful. Masamune succeeded him at a young age, though despite this, he never got in the way of his son's beliefs at all. In fact, his father had always supported him as far as he could remember.

Years later after Masamune's succession, neighboring families voiced their dissatisfaction with the young lord's campaigns. The one eyed dragon was ruthless, and showed no mercy even towards lands that surrounded his own, such as the provinces Dewa and Mutsu. This caused the other clans to be in a state of disarray.

In an attempt to put an end to this, said clans invited Terumune for dinner. Their purpose was to request the man to put an end to his son's cruel conquest. It was in vain however: Terumune just told them that he was not able to stop Masamune, nor could he control him.

This denial resulted in the kidnapping of Terumune Date by The Hatakeyama, a neighboring clan.

Masamune bit his bottom lip at the reminiscence. To think that they took his father hostage just because he did what every father would do, which was being supportive.

When the one eyed dragon got word of his father's kidnapping he set out to hunt down the filthy criminals for their heinous act. Not only were they cowards for not trying to strike Masamune directly, but putting him into this kind of position where he had no choice but to comply was also very humiliating and shameful. It truly enraged him.

As soon as Masamune had finally reached his father and his kidnappers, he wanted to negotiate his father's freedom so that he could plan his revenge after. He would make these fools live through hell, however, what happened next was not something he could have ever anticipated.

Terumune didn't want his son to be at a disadvantage. He didn't want the young lord to give up on his conquest just because of him, so he told Masamune to just kill every single member of the Hatakeyama clan, even if it would cost him his own life.

At that moment, without hesitation, Masamune gave the final order. His soldiers obeyed and shot every single clan member.

The one eyed dragon remembered his father's expression just moments before the old man dropped dead right in front of his eyes.

"Goodbye…Father."

Thinking about this very moment still broke Masamune. Up until now, he was still seeing nightmares about his dead father. This moment in his life would forever taint him, but at the same time it was also what drove him to strive even harder for his goals.

No one would ever stand in his way ever again. His brother was dead, his mother had left his life. There was only him and his ambition and he planned to keep it that way. He was determined and it was also the reason why he would never take his wife into battle. She would be safe under his soldiers' protection.

After all, he would never forgive himself if the enemy somehow would take her from him. The past could not be repeated. Ever.

"I will protect Mego and I will make sure Japan will find peace. This land will become prosperous and I will cleanse these lands from the scum that walk this earth. I will realize all of your ideals father, your death will not be in vain."

The one eyed dragon talked to himself loudly. He was determined. No matter how many lies people spread about him and no matter what anyone would say or do, nothing could stop him anymore.

Not now, not ever.

Meanwhile, Shiorin just sat down in a corner, hugging her knees as her eyes roamed within the darkness of her tent. Across from her was Magoichi Saika, who had just introduced himself properly after their talk earlier.

He held up a small lantern, so she could make up his features in the dark. He was smiling. it seemed genuine.

There was only silence between the two for quite some time, until the young woman opened her mouth to speak.

"I won't run away…" She told the man, because she knew he was supposed to watch over her until she fell asleep. How could she, though? How could anyone fall asleep knowing they would die the next day? Or the day after, or possibly the day after that, if she was lucky.

Magoichi huffed. "I know you won't." He stared at her. "Because if you will, you'll probably get killed."

"Y- you mean you are trying to prevent me from getting killed?" She looked up in surprise. Why would he even care? How could he possibly care?

"You're too young to die. Besides, you're a woman."

Shiorin sent him a frown, which Magoichi only laughed at. Apparently, the young woman didn't know about his famous reputation. Maybe that was a good thing. He would be troubled if she would get suspicious of him because he is a womanizer. In all honesty though, she was not his type.

"Don't you have anything more important to do though…?" Shiorin asked again.

Magoichi shrugged, then shook his head. "It's pretty late and I'm sure that if you do anything stupid, Masamune will have my head as well. If I would do anything that would put the Date in a less favorable position it would be the end of me."

"I don't think it really matters what I'll do… If I run I'll die, when I'll fight alongside you I'll die.." Her voice was shaky, indicating that she was about to break down.

"Hey, I thought we talked this through already." Magoichi looked at the young woman who hid her face in her knees. He waited for a reply, but she went silent. At first, he cocked an eyebrow at her, but when he noticed her trembling shoulders he realized she was crying.

He couldn't handle crying women, it made him feel nervous and awkward. "I'm more like you than you think…" he started.

Shiorin didn't reply but he noticed that her body became tense. He figured she was listening, so he just continued, "I'm just a mercenary, and I used to be part of an organization known as the Saika Renegades. I never fancied war, odd jobs were more my thing. Makes it easier to have fun outside of work." He chuckled as he referred vaguely to his antics as a womanizer.

Blue eyes stared up at him.

Magoichi smiled. "I probably hate war more than anyone else, because I lost my loved ones and my home for the sake of vengeance of a demonic warlord." A scowl creeped upon his face as he remembered how he lost his family and friends all thanks to Nobunaga Oda, who burned down Magoichi's village and everyone inside of it. All that was left were ashes.

Shiorin's frown softened and her expression was compassionate.

"After I went through that hell, I completely lost my way. All I wanted was revenge and my life suddenly revolved only around that. I was desperate to kill him and I would do whatever it took. In the end, I succeeded and shot him." Magoichi bit his lip. "I thought my suffering would finally end, but I was wrong. After that man's death, there was only chaos left. More innocent lives got lost because of me and I completely lost myself to despair. I learnt a valuable lesson: War only causes grief."

The young woman gasped softly. She had no idea that a man like him had such a dark past. He had suffered greatly, but still he managed to smile the way he did. It seemed that she misjudged him. Of course she could have never completely judged him since she scarcely knows him a day. Though, it is hard to imagine that someone so brave and seemingly carefree could have ever suffered as much as he did. It made her feel kind of bad about herself. She was such a coward. She cried so much just because she was afraid to die. Then you had soldiers like Magoichi, who fought so bravely despite having suffered a great deal in life. She should be ashamed of herself.

Magoichi locked his gaze upon hers. "Then one day I had the opportunity to fight alongside someone greater. Finally, there was someone out there who had opened my eyes. He was someone who would make a change." The man's lips formed a wide grin. "The one eyed dragon of Oshu would make this land peaceful and prosperous. It made me realize that if I could help him accomplish this, then no one else would have to suffer like I did. Japan would finally be free."

A soft sniffle made him stare at the girl once more. She dried her tears.

"Heh, of course even I am afraid to die at times. I told you this during our talk earlier." The gunslinger added. "But, I'd rather die and leave behind a safe and great nation than to die in vain."

Shiorin sighed and nodded. She understood the man's reasoning and she could understand his feelings. She wouldn't know what to do if her village got wiped out. After all, she didn't have any family besides her cousin and her aunt and neither were around anymore. The villagers were all she had. As a matter of fact, she was not even sure if she had any other family. Shiorin figured that her parents died when she was only a baby or she was either too young to remember. She did not know this for a fact, but her lack of memory was all she had to go by. Whenever she tried to ask her aunt or her cousin about their family, they never gave her a clear answer. No one ever told her whether her parents were truly dead, or just not around. Maybe they lived somewhere else within this large country? Maybe they died in war? She had no way to know. All that Rin knew was that she did not have a single memory of them. She did not even remember as much as what they looked like. She did not know if she resembled either of them. This was actually kind of sad. The young woman hoped that one day, she would learn the truth.

"I don't want to die…" She suddenly spoke out loud, which earned her a stare.

"I know Rin, I know. He got up and walked towards her to take a seat next to her. "Though you have to remember, if you can become stronger, then your chances of survival will be bigger."

"But…" she could feel her throat becoming dry. "I don't think I can kill anyone." The thought of blood on her hands made her equally sick.

Magoichi sighed and put a hand on her shoulders. "Do you know why soldiers go to war?" There was no reply, so the gunslinger just decided to answer his own question. "Of course, there are many different reasons. But first and foremost, soldiers fight to protect something that is dear to them. To some that might be their homes. For others it might be their family. There are also soldiers who seek power, or fame, you name it. My point is that their ultimate goal is always protection."

The young woman bit her bottom lip, her fingers fiddling with her black locks. She had to think hard about the gunslinger's words and the meaning behind them.

'Fight and protect…' Of course, if she had believed for a single moment that she was capable of defending an entire nation, she would have never doubted herself in the first place, but that was the whole point. She just did not understand why Masamune picked her. She was at a loss.

Thinking made her tired. So very tired. She could feel her body become heavy and it made her want to lay down. Slowly, she dropped herself onto her side and she closed her eyes, then she spoke softly. "Can I really protect anyone?" Could she? Could she kill in order to protect what she loved, without getting killed herself? That was the real question.

"Of course you can, kiddo." The gunslinger tried to encourage her, as lightheartedly as possible. He was genuine though. After all, if Masamune believed in her for whatever reason, then he would not doubt that Rin was in fact, a capable warrior. In due time, she could prove herself.

Mere moments later, Magoichi smiled as all that he could hear was the sound of her heavy breathing, meaning that she had fallen asleep at last.

The tall man got up and softly whispered. "Don't you dare die." he huffed, then walked out of the tent. Outside, he turned towards a guard on duty.

"Keep an eye on this one, okay?"

The soldier just nodded and Magoichi waved at him, then walked off towards his own tent. He should get some rest himself, while he still can.

The next morning Shiorin startled awake because of a very loud voice. Once she opened her eyes, the bright sun also did not help her case. In fact, the sunrays were so bright it literally hurt her eyes. She groaned and rolled onto her back and once she looked up, one of the soldiers was staring down at her with the biggest scowl one could imagine.

She looked back at him questionably and squeaked. Funnily enough, the man did not wait for her to actually speak, but acknowledged her confused noises and stated what his business was.

"Lord Masamune has sent me to awaken you and test your fighting abilities. You're inquired to come with me at once so that I can make a report afterwards.

Confusion creeped upon the black haired woman's features, however the man did not say anything else, but just walked out of the tent.

Shiorin frowned and scrambled after the soldier. He was waiting outside and turned towards her once she stood in front of him. "Get ready. I shall await you in the area south from here. There is an open field located, you can't miss it." And with that, he took off before the woman even had a chance to respond.

South? She didn't even know where south was from here. She could read and was able to tell directions thanks to the old lady and the blacksmith in her village. However, she could not read maps. Orientation was not her forte. Her way of learning routes was getting lost at least once or twice, or maybe thrice if she was that unlucky.

In any case, she should not make the man wait for her. The woman scurried on her way to find a nearby body of water. After she washed herself, she put on her dress and her armor again, then went to find the soldier who was awaiting her somewhere south from here.

On her way, she got lost in thought, wondering where Masamune was. When she passed by his tent earlier, it seemed to be empty. Magoichi also seemed to be out. The Date army's camp was a quiet place at the moment.

'Trees…trees, trees!'

Shiorin looked around, only to be surrounded by more trees. She frowned, then turned to the right, kept on walking and hoped for the best. Unfortunately, there was still no sign of the soldier, nor could she see if there was an open field nearby.

It was no big deal. No need to panic. If she would turn the other way, she would find it eventually, right?

After some time passed however, she started to feel quite distressed. It started to look like she was lost. That would be a huge problem. If she lost the camp, Masamune might find her and what if he misunderstood, thinking she was trying to flee? He would surely kill her.

This thought made Rin panic even more. Her walking slowly turned into running. After circling the forest a few more times, she still did not reach her destination. As a matter of fact, she had never seen so many trees before. Heck.

"At this rate I'm doomed…" The young woman spoke out loud. She felt utterly defeated and sank to her knees. She wasn't even a part of the Date army for a whole day and she already messed up. Panic slowly turned into despair, and Rin murmured quietly, until rustling made her look up. Warily, she looked around until the rustling sounded closer. Her heart started beating fast, fearing it might be Masamune to come and shoot her.

She braced herself, but let out a big sigh of relief when it appeared to be the soldier who had accosted her before.

"You're late."

"I– I'm sorry. I couldn't find my way—" he cut her off.

"Just come with me, we can't afford to waste any more time." He rudely uttered and gestured for her to follow, making her scramble and scurry after him.

After a short walk, they finally reached an open field. Thankfully she was not that far off her destination after all. Her luck has not yet ended.

"Okay," The soldier's voice interrupted her thoughts. "Just show me what you got." He said as he walked towards the middle of the field, then turned around to face her.

Shiorin stared at him in confusion. "E- Eh?" To which the soldier sighed.

"Show me what you got. As in, try to attack me now. "

The young woman rigorously shook her head. "B- but—"

"Look. If you refuse, or aren't able to lay a single scratch on me, I will kill you."

Blue eyes stared at the man in disbelief, the girl's body was frozen in place. Did he just say…?

"The lord requested me to test your martial prowess. If you were incapable of putting up a decent fight, I'm ordered to kill you." With that said, the man aimed his musket at her.

This was Shiorin's first real test. Masamune intended to force her to fight by putting her into a dangerous situation like this. The young woman was aware of this, but that made it all the worse.

"What are you waiting for? You don't happen to think I'm just bluffing, are you?" It seemed that the soldier's patience began to run out.

Shiorin shook her head once again. She definitely knew that he wasn't bluffing. The one eyed dragon had already proven to her before that he was a man of his word. If his soldiers said they got ordered to kill her, she'd best believe it. There was once again, no way out of this situation.

Slowly but surely, she started backing away.

"If you run you'll die." The man in front of her reminded her cold heartedly. What did she expect? In front of her was a real samurai. A real warrior. Not a bandit nor a pirate.

Ending her life would mean nothing to someone like him. In all honesty, it made her feel like crying, because she did not know what to do. She wanted to run. Should she just charge at him, but that would probably get her shot. To be fair, Shiorin was fairly agile and climbing trees or roofs was something she'd do often. She was very nimble, so it was easy to do. Could she really escape a bullet though? One wrong prediction and she would be dead.

"Three…"

The young woman's eyes widened when the soldier's voice snapped her back into reality. He started to count down loudly.

"Two…"

Shiorin panicked and moved a step back, her entire body quivering.

"One…"

It was now or never. Within a split second, she twirled around on one foot, her body turning and preparing to move in the opposite direction as a loud gunshot sounded within the otherwise silent forest.